Achtung: Smart! – Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Idee der “Smart City” für deutsche Kommunen

Cities today experience a radical transformation labeled as the fourth industrial revolution or digitalization. At the same time they encounter challenges like climate change, enhancing globalization and in particular in Germany demographic change. Growth as well as shrinkage give rise to different rooms of maneuvers for cities. Any development of ‚smart city‘ approaches is always restricted by these circumstances. The idea of a ‚smart city‘ and especially the approach’s efficiency therefore need to be assessed in a critical way. So the central questions are: Which risks does the idea of a ‚smart city‘ comprise? How prepared are cities in Germany for the changes ahead? How could recommendations for local authorities look like? Therefore the publication considers the challenges for cities and the theoretical and technological roots of the ‚smart city‘ idea as well as the possibilities and boundaries for ‚smart city‘ approaches. Furthermore the publication comprises a presentation of the current status of implementation. With these findings in mind the opportunities of a ‚smart city‘ are weighted out against the rooms of maneuvers and boundaries of cities in Germany. Which steps a city has to take in order to transform the possibilities of a ‚smart city‘ in a secure and sustainable way into a substantial approach and part of an integrative urban development is represented in a form of recommendations for action.